Int. J. Electron. Commun.

(AEÜ) 170 (2023) 154828

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International Journal of Electronics and Communications

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/aeue

Regular paper

Broadband metamaterial absorber for stealth applications at K-band

Laxmikant Dewangan a, Megh Sainadh Patinavalasa b, Juin Acharjee c, Yogesh Solunke d,
Saptarshi Ghosh b, Nipun Kumar Mishra a, *
a
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Bilaspur, India
b
Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT, Indore, India
c
ST. Thomas’ College of Engineering and Technology, Kolkota, India
d
Department of Electronics and Communication, VNIT, Nagpur, India

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: This paper focuses on the design and analysis of a polarization-insensitive wide-angle broadband metamaterial
Metamaterial absorber for stealth applications at the K band. The unit cell of the metamaterial absorber is comprised of a
Electromagnetic absorber symmetrically arranged ladder shape geometry made of copper metal, which is imprinted on a metal-backed FR-
Broadband
4 substrate. The structure shows more than 91% absorptivity ranging from 21.2 to 28.2 GHz for both transverse
Polarization insensitive
Oblique incidence
electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) polarized waves under normal incidence. The topology is four-fold
Compact symmetric and yields polarization-insensitive responses for different angles of polarization under both TE and
TM polarized waves. The structure is also investigated under oblique incidence where the 80% absorptivity holds
up to 45◦ incident angles for both TE and TM waves. The absorption mechanism is explained with the help of top
and bottom surface current distribution, induced electric field, and parametric analysis. To verify the resonances
in the structure, characteristic mode, and equivalent circuit analysis have been carried out and presented. A
prototype of the absorber has been fabricated and simulated results are validated with measured results. The
novelty of the proposed absorber lies in its unique metallic pattern on a λ0/8 thin FR-4 substrate while showing
the wide absorption bandwidth to normal and oblique incidence. All the above-mentioned attributes in a simple
design make it commercially suitable for radar cross-section (RCS) reduction applications at the K band.

1. Introduction advantages as compared to conventional EM absorbers.

The metamaterial absorber has been first experimentally demon­
Metamaterial has a solitary feature of exhibiting controllable mate­ strated by Landyet. al. in 2008 [1]. After that, several simple as well as
rial parameters originating from a periodic arrangement of the unit cell complex metamaterial absorber structures have been developed to
of the sub-wavelength resonant structure. Based on effective medium realize various characteristics at different frequency bands researchers,
theory, they can be characterized by the complex values of effective including dual-band [2], triple-band [3], multiband [4], broadband [5],
permittivity εeff = ε′ + jε″ and permeability μeff = μ′+jμ″. These consti­ dual layer [6,7], and multi-layer [8–11]. A metamaterial structure for
tutive parameters of the electromagnetic (EM) wave can be varied by the application of EM energy harvesting is presented in [12]. Several
regulating the geometric dimensions of the designed structure. This has polarization-insensitive absorber structures have also been reported in
led to exploring metamaterials in various applications nowadays. One [13–16]. Wideband metamaterial absorbers based on triangular reso­
such application is in the domain of an EM absorber, which absorbs an nators and non-magnetic EM absorbers with spatially symmetric nano­
incoming EM signal and dissipates it across the structure without dis­ structures are designed and investigated in [17,18]. Subsequently,
playing any significant reflection or transmission; hence, no or very less metamaterial absorbers have been designed for different frequency
amount of energy is returned to RADAR for detection purposes. Conse­ ranges like GHz to THz range [19], near visible and infrared regions
quently, metamaterial-based EM absorbers have been widely used for [20], mid-infrared (MIR) regions [21], and near microwave regions
lowering the radar cross section (RCS) of aircraft used in stealth tech­ [22]. A microwave absorber consisting of an electric LC resonator
nology. In addition, these metamaterial structures are generally made structure, loaded with resistors and backed by a complimentary patch is
with small thicknesses and compact size, thereby having practical reported in [23] for the energy harvesting application. The structures

* Corresponding author.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeue.2023.154828
Received 11 May 2023; Accepted 16 July 2023
Available online 18 July 2023
1434-8411/© 2023 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.
L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

have also been designed aiming for other applications, such as thermal and height of 1.54 mm, and the geometry is backed by a metallic plate
energy harvesting [24], scattering reduction [25], imaging [26], made of copper, with an electric conductivity (σ)of 5.8 × 107 s/m and a
biomedical sensors [27], temperature sensors, and frequency-selective thickness of 0.035 mm. The complete evolution of design steps is shown
thermal emitters [28]. But, most of these earlier reported broadband in Fig. 1 (a) and 1 (b). As depicted in Fig. 2, a single ladder patch is
absorbers have used either lumped resistors or resistive sheets, or yielding more than 90% narrow-band absorption response with peaks at
resistive inks to obtain wideband responses. Those techniques, although 13 and 15 GHz; however, the absorptivity is poor at the K band. After the
exhibit large bandwidths, have several limitations, such as high cost, insertion of a 90◦ -rotated ladder-shaped structure, the absorption peaks
manufacturing complexity, large footprint, multilayer topologies, etc. at lower frequencies remain unchanged while the absorption perfor­
In contrast to earlier designs, our proposed design is based on peri­ mance increases at the K band in wide frequency spectra. Further, the
odic metallic patterns imprinted on a single-layer dielectric substrate symmetrically arranged structures yield polarization insensitivity, and
where multiple resonances are optimized together to obtain the wide­ additional coupling between the rotated structures produces more LC
band response. The structure has been manufactured using commer­ resonances at the K band, resulting in wide-band EM absorption. The
cially available printed circuit board (PCB) technique and hence is very geometric dimensions have been optimized such that the absorption
low cost. While simulated, the structure shows above 91% absorptivity peaks are observed at around 13 GHz, 15 GHz, and 19.5 GHz, thereby
ranging from 21.2 to 28.2 GHz in the K-band under normal incidence. In covering the K-band (18–24 GHz) applications.
addition, the geometry is four-fold symmetric and yields a polarization- The absorbing performance of the proposed geometry can be
insensitive response. The structure is also angularly stable, thereby computed by following equations [24]:
displaying 80% absorptivity up to 45◦ incident angle for both transverse
electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) polarized waves. And all the A = 1 − R(ω) − T(ω) = 1 − |S11 |2 − |S12 |2 (1)
above characteristics are obtained with a λ0/8 thin FR-4 substrate
(where λ0 is the operating wavelength corresponding to the center fre­ A = 1 − R(ω) = 1 − |S11 |2 (2)
quency of the absorption bandwidth 24.7 GHz). Thus, the novelties of
where R(ω) = |S11|2 and T(ω) = |S21|2 are the reflected and transmitted
the proposed structure are manifold, viz. wide absorption bandwidth,
power, respectively. The metallic back layer of the structure acts as a
polarization-insensitive response, angularly stable behavior, ultra-thin
physical barrier for EM waves to block the transmission. Hence, the
geometry, ease of manufacture, low-cost design, and wide adapt­
transmission coefficient (S12) becomes zero, and Eq. (1) reduces to Eq.
ability. The important parameters are also summarized in Table-3 and
(2). While considering both co- and cross-polarized reflection co­
compared with the earlier reported absorber articles to show the novelty
efficients, the absorptivity of the metamaterial absorber can be
of the proposed absorber. Commercial software CST microwave studio
expressed as:
has been utilized for checking the simulation performance of the design
through finite integration technique. Fabrication and measurement of A = 1 − |S11co |2 − |S11cross |2 (3)
the proposed absorber structure have been carried out and fair agree­
ment between simulated and measured results confirms the validity of where A is the absorptivity, S11co (Γ‖) is the co-polarized reflection co­
the proposed designs. efficient, and S11cross (Γ⊥ ) is the cross-polarized reflection coefficient.
The paper is organized into six sections as follows. Section II exhibits The total reflection coefficient S11 at a normal incidence angle is given
a detailed description of the unit cell design, and its associated absorp­ by:
tion mechanism, effective medium theory, surface current distribution,
Z(ω) − η0
and equivalent circuit model. In section III, the performance of the S11 = (4)
Z(ω) + η0
structure with respect to several dimensional parameters is demon­
strated. The characteristic mode analysis (CMA) has also been presented
where Z(ω) is the impedance of the structure, and ηois the impedance of
to verify the resonance characteristics of the geometry. Further, an
free space.
investigation on insensitiveness related to polarization angle and obli­
√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
que incidence angle for TE and TM polarized waves is carried out in μ0 μr (ω)
section IV. Fabrication and measured responses have been discussed in Z (ω) = (5)
ε0 εr (ω)
section V. Finally, a conclusion has been drawn in section VI.
√̅̅̅̅̅̅
μ0
2. Unit cell Design, equivalent circuit model, and absorption ηo = = 377 Ω (6)
ε0
mechanism
When the impedance of the proposed structure Z(ω) is matched with
In this section, a detailed study of the unit cell, its design method­ the impedance of free space ηo, it minimizes the reflection coefficient
ology, and its absorption mechanism has been discussed. The main (S11) and hence the absorptivity (A) will be maximum. Eq. (4) indicates
objective of designing the proposed geometry is to absorb the incident that at the absorption frequency (where absorption is maximum and
EM wave at the K-band (18–24 GHz) range aiming for RCS reduction reflection is minimum), the free space impedance (ηo) becomes almost
application. Initially, a square shape patch has been chosen and multiple equal to the impedance of the structure Z(ω). While equating Eq. (5)
cuts are introduced through optimization for obtaining the resonances in with (6) under this condition, we obtain εreal = μreal, where εreal
the desired band. Afterward, the topology has been replicated four times andμrealarethe effective permittivity and effective permeability, respec­
in orthogonal orientation to make the design four-fold symmetric. This tively, of the metamaterial absorber structure. Thus, the constitutive EM
ladder shape geometry results in a wideband absorption bandwidth in parameters of the geometry can be regulated by adjusting the di­
the higher frequency. Finally, a similar design methodology is used to mensions of the topology.
add another ladder shape geometry in the outward position, so that the The simulated absorption, reflection, and transmission coefficient
absorption bandwidth gets further enhanced. The structure overall are drawn in Fig. 3 to show the overall performance of the proposed
produces multiple numbers of inductances and capacitances owing to absorber. The simulation has been performed in the CST software using
this ladder geometry and results in an overall broadband absorption a frequency domain solver. To realize the periodic structure, floquet port
behavior. mode and unit cell boundary conditions have been applied, where × and
The unit cell of the structure consists of a symmetrically arranged y directions are considered as a unit cell while the z-direction is left
ladder-shaped top metallic patch imprinted on an FR-4 dielectric sub­ open, and a plane wave is applied from zmax port. The simulated results
strate having relative permittivity (εr) of 4.3, loss tangent (tanδ) of 0.02, are showing the co and cross-component of reflected EM wave below

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Fig. 1. (a) Design steps of proposed absorber. (b) Unit cell of the proposed absorber, detailed dimensions: a1 = 1, a2 = 3.4, a3 = 5.4, b1 = 0.8, b2 = 2, b3 = 1.8, p =
20, and h = 1.54 (all dimensions are in mm).

Fig. 2. Absorption responses at different steps: (a) step 1, (b) step 2, (c) step 3, (d) step 4, (e) proposed absorber, and (f) combining all steps together.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

The equivalent circuit of the proposed unit cell is illustrated in Fig. 4

(a) which consists of the parallel combination of four series R-L-C cir­
cuits. The simplified equivalent circuit is presented in Fig. 4(c). The unit
cell comprises eight ladder-shaped patches, where each patch offers
individual inductance and resistance components. The small gap be­
tween subsequent patches gives rise to the capacitance component.
Thus, each ladder-shaped structure is represented by a series of R-L-C
circuits, and the overall design consists of multiple R-L-C circuits. The
circuits are further combined to display the simplified circuit model in
Fig. 4(c), where L1eq, C1eq, R1eq correspond to the equivalent circuit
parameters for the left side, L2eq, C2eq, R2eq correspond to the equivalent
circuit parameters for the left side, CC1 and CC2 are equivalent capaci­
tances for the top and bottom end, td represents the dielectric substrate
equivalent transmission line, and R corresponds to the resistance of the
back metal plane (with very small value). The final equivalent imped­
ance of the unit cell can be expressed as:

Fig. 3. Simulated absorption, reflection, and transmission coefficient of the 1

Zeq = Req + jω Leq + (7)
proposed wideband absorber. jωCeq

where Ceq is the equivalent capacitance is a combination of individual

− 10 dB throughout the absorption band while the transmission coeffi­
capacitance and resistance of the top copper patch which is generally
cient is below − 40 dB, acting as a physical barrier for the incoming EM
small. Similarly, the substrate impedance can be expressed as [7]:
wave.

Fig.4. (a) Equivalent circuit model of a unit cell structure. (b) Comparison of absorptivity of CST and ADS simulated results. (c) Simplified equivalent circuit model
of the proposed absorber structure.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
μ0 μ r at 27.8 GHz, the surface current isdistributed at all the patches from I to
ZTML = ZD + ZC = j tan(kd ) + Rd + 1/jωCc (8)
ε0 εr VIII, while a strongelectric field between the horizontal and vertical
neighboring unit cells is observed. The dielectric substrate is excited
where ∊r and μr are the relative permittivity and permeability of the through a magnetic field and the orientations of the surface current at
√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
dielectric substrate. k − ko εr μr is the incident wave number of the the top conductive metallic patch and the bottom metal plate are
substrate. Rd is the equivalent resistance due to dielectric loss in the opposite to each other at all resonances. These anti-parallel surface
substrate representing the imaginary part of the material parameters, currents at the top and bottom layers constitute a circulating loop cur­
and Cc is the coupling capacitance due to periodic structure. To verify rent, forming a strong magnetic response at resonance frequencies
the above assumption and to find out the possible values of L, C, and, R, within the structure. These simultaneously formed electric and magnetic
tuning has been carried out in the ADS circuit simulator. The results excitation yield strong absorptivity at resonance frequencies. The
obtained from ADS have been compared with the simulated results from dielectric substrate is excited through a magnetic field and the orien­
CST. A fair agreement between the results validates the equivalent cir­ tations of surface current at the top conductive metallic patch and the
cuit model of the structure as depicted in Fig. 4(b). Each value of the L, bottom are opposite to each other at all resonances. These simultaneous
C, and R component is illustrated in Table 1. electric and magnetic excitations can be explained by the constitutive
The proposed absorber structure provides an absorption bandwidth EM parameters, viz. effective permittivity and effective permeability, as
of 7 GHz ranging from 21.2 to 28.2 GHz in the K-band with more than illustrated in Fig. 6. The real values of both the parameters are depicted
91% absorptivity. Peak absorption has been observed at frequencies in Fig. 6(a) at 21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz, while their corre­
21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz with 99.9%, 96%, and 99.4% ab­ sponding imaginary parts are compared in Fig. 6(b). It is observed that
sorptivity, respectively. The top metallic conductive patch produces these values match with each other at absorption frequencies, thus
equivalent inductances while the spacing between the symmetrically satisfying Eqs. (4)-(6), which is necessary to obtain a minimum reflec­
arranged ladder shape structure yields the desired capacitances for tion and maximum absorption. The values are also presented in Table 2,
producing the LCresonances. The incident EM wave gets trapped inside showing the similarity between effective EM parameters at absorption
the structure at resonances, while the ohmic loss in the metal and the frequencies.
dielectric loss in the FR-4 lossy substrate assist in dissipating the EM
wave inside the structure. A very small amount of energy is reflected 3. Parametric Analysis, RCS Analysis, and characteristic mode
toward the source, thereby reducing the RCS over a large frequency. analysis (CMA) of the structure
To investigate the magnetic and electric responses, the top and
bottom surface current distribution and induced electric field at reso­ In order to reveal the impacts of geometrical parameters on the ab­
nant frequencies 21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz are presented in sorptivity of the proposed metamaterial absorber, extensive parametric
Fig. 5 (a) and (b), respectively. The figures show that at different reso­ analysis has been carried out. The variations in the length (a1 = 1 mm,
nant frequencies, different regions of the structure get excited and a2 = 3.4 mm, a3 = 5.4 mm) and width (b1 = 0.8 mm, b2 = 2 mm, b3 =
become responsible for electric resonances. In order to reveal the ab­ 1.8 mm) of several patches, as depicted in Fig. 7(a) and (b), affect the
sorption mechanism of the structure, the electric field and surface cur­ overall inductance and capacitance and subsequently, the peak ab­
rent distributions at one of the absorption peak frequencies 21.4 GHz are sorptivity as well as the absorption bandwidth are shifted. The variation
analyzed in Fig. 5 (a). It is observed that a large current flows in the in length a1 controls the first peak, while variations in a2 and a3 affect
inner portion of patches I, II, III, IV, and the outer portion of patches V, the first and second resonance peaks, respectively, along with the
VI, VII, and VIII, while a strong electric field is observed between the bandwidth. The third peak remains constant with the variation in length
diagonally placed inner and outer ladder patches. At 24.4 GHz, thedis­ a1, a2, and a3. Changes in width b1 affect all three peaks, while variations
placement current is observed between the inner and outer patches as in b2 and b3 have an impact on the first and second absorption peaks.
well as between the outer patches and neighboring unit cells. Moreover, Further variation in the periodicity parameter ‘p’ is analyzed in Fig. 7(c),
while other dimensions of the unit cell are kept constant to their opti­
mized values. The dimension ‘p’ controls the separation between the two
Table 1
adjacent unit cells. Therefore, increasing the value of ‘p’ increases the
ADS tuned value of L, R, C.
distance between the adjacent unit cells and subsequently reduces the
Component Values coupling, and as a result, the absorption frequency shifts to the higher
C1 0.034 pF frequency side. The effect of variation in the relative permittivity of the
L1 0.02 mH substrate on the absorption behavior is examined in Fig. 7(d). Three
R1 0.3 Ω
different substrates (Rogers 5870, FR-4, and Rogers 6006) are consid­
C2 0.012 pF
L2 0.015 mH ered and corresponding absorptivity responses have been checked. It is
R2 2.34 Ω observed that the FR-4 substrate having a dielectric constant (εr) of 4.3
C3 0.034 pF shows the optimum result in terms of absorption magnitude and ab­
L3 0.02 mH sorption bandwidth. Change in the value of effective permittivity
R3 3.5 Ω
C4 0.012 pF
inversely affects the absorption frequency as expected, thereby showing
L4 0.55 mH different absorption characteristics for different substrate materials.
R4 1.34 Ω This property of the proposed absorber can be used as a sensor to
C5 0.034 pF identify different dielectric materials.
C6 0.02 pF
The term radar cross-section (RCS) is defined as the detection ability
L5 0.3 mH
R5 0.43 Ω of any object by radar equipment. Several parts of equipment, such as
C7 0.115 pF combat aircraft, tanks, and missiles are widely used in warfare and
L7 2.4 mH should have low RCS such that they cannot be detected by enemy radars.
R7 7.65 Ω To serve this purpose, metamaterial absorbers are often used on those
L8 0.97 mH
R8 3.48 Ω
devices, which can absorb the incident EM wave and make those devices
C9 0.087 pF undetected by radars, by lowering their RCS values. The RCS of any
L9 0.0065 mH target is mathematically expressed as [30]:
R9 6.33 Ω
C10 0.76 pF

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Fig. 5. (a) Top and bottom surface current distribution of unit cell structure at the resonance frequency. (b) Induced electric field of unit cell structure at resonance
frequencies.

Fig. 6. Constitutive EM parameters (effective permittivity and effective permeability) of the proposed absorber structure under normal incidence: (a) real parts, and
(b) imaginary part.

√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
4πPr Rmax
Table 2 σ= (9)
Retrieved Values of Effective Permittivity, And Effective Permeability At Reso­ Pt G2 λ2
nance Frequencies.
where radar cross-section, Rmax is the maximum radar detection range,
Resonance Frequency (GHz) Real Part Imaginary Part Pt is the transmitting power from the radar antenna, Pr is the received
ε μ eff μ ε eff ε μ eff μ ε eff power detected by the antenna, and Gt = Gr = G are the radar’s trans­
21.4 GHz 2 1.8 0.8 0.9 mitting and receiving antenna’s gain, respectively. Eq. (9) shows that
24.4 GHz 1.5 1.7 1.1 1 the RCS can be reduced if the reflected power (Pr) can be reduced either
27.8 GHz 0.8 1.1 2.1 1.9 by absorption or scattering.
In order to verify the performance of the proposed absorber, the RCS
response has been studied in CST software. A 10 × 10-unit cell

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Fig. 7. Variation of different design parameters of the absorber, (a) effect of length a1, a2, a3 (b) effect of width b1, b2, b3, (c) effect of substrate dimension ‘p’, (d)
effect of permittivity (εr) of the substrate.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

arrangement with an overall dimension of 200 mm × 200 mm × 1.61 excitation coefficient, defined as [30]:
mm absorber structure is designed in the software and plane wave ∮˙
boundary conditions are applied. The monostatic RCS has been checked, → →i
Vni = J n .E dS (13)
where EM wave is incident on the structure under normal incidence. If S

the reflected signal from the structure is large, its RCS will be high and
where Ei is an impressive source. The eigenvalue λn gives insight into the
the structure will be easily detected by the radar. On the contrary, if the
nature of the mode. If its absolute value is zero, it means that the mode is
reflected signal can be absorbed by the structure, the RCS will be very
radiating. Regarding the signal, negative modes (λn < 0) are storing
small. It is observed in Fig. 8(a) that the RCS response is significantly
electric energy, and positive modes (λn > 0) are storing magnetic energy.
reduced to 30.3 dBm2,34.6 dBm2, 40.3 dBm2, 35.8 dBm2, 34.2 dBm2,
Among the several parameters describing the CMA, the characteristic
and 40.2 dBm2at resonant frequencies 8.7 GHz, 13.0 GHz, 17.2 GHz,
angle βn can be written as [30]:
21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz, respectively. In Fig. 8(b), their
corresponding 3-D scattering patterns at different resonant frequencies βn = 180o − atan(λn ) (14)
are presented, where the reflected signal is found returning to the
For a given mode to be resonant, its characteristic angle should be
incoming direction at low frequencies, but it is scattering in different
180◦, which is equivalent to its Eigenmode λ being zero. Another
directions at higher frequencies, particularly, at K-band. This indicates
parameter that can be derived from the Eigenmode analysis is the modal
that the RCS value at lower frequencies is large, but it is significantly
significance (MS). This MS can be defined as [31]:
small at higher frequencies, thereby confirming the RCS reduction per­
⃒ ⃒
formance of the structure at this frequency range. Owing to the disper­ ⃒ 1 ⃒
MSn = ⃒⃒ ⃒ (15)
sive nature of the FR-4 substrate, the scattering happens at higher 1 + jλn⃒
frequencies, however, more RCS reduction is observed compared to the
frequencies in which the reflected signal is returned in the direction of The range of MS lies between 0and1. When MS is close to 1, the
resonance will occur more easily. As illustrated in Fig. 9(a) and (b), both
incident EM wave.
Further, the characteristic mode analysis (CMA) of the unit cell has βn and λn are 180◦ and 0, respectively, which confirms the modes at
resonance frequencies [31]. The MS of the proposed absorber has been
been presented to verify the resonance phenomena of the proposed
absorber. CMA expresses the existing current patterns in a body using its calculated and presented in Fig. 9(c) in the frequency range of 20–29
GHz. Modes are excited at 21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz. Excitation
natural modes of resonance. These equations are numerically solved
of modes is important to characterize the absorption and trapping of
using a discretized scheme. The CMA is based on the following weighted
incident EM signals at the top of the structure. At the same time, it can be
eigenvalue equation [29]:
( ) ( ) observed that at each mode, the wide bandwidth of MS ≥ 0.707 has been
→ → obtained, indicating that the proposed absorber is resonating at fre­
X J n = λn R J n (10)
quencies close to each other at the K band. To simulate the above results,
an integral equation solver is used in the CST software with perfect
→
where λn are the eigenvalues, and j n are the eigen currents. The com­ electric conductor (PEC) boundary condition, where open space is pro­
plex impedance Z is defined as [29]: vided at the x-direction and y-direction, while electric (Et = 0) and open
space have been considered for Zmin and Zmax, respectively.
Z = R + jX. (11)
The total current on the structure can be described as a weighted sum 4. Simulated results of TE and TM polarized wave under normal
of the orthogonal components [29]: and oblique incidence

→ ∑ ∑ Vi → The relationship between the absorption behavior to the polarization

n J n
j = an Jn = (12)
n n
1 + jλn and incident angle is studied in this section. The proposed structure is
investigated for polarization insensitivity by varying the polarization
where αn is the modal weighting coefficient and Vni is the modal angle (ɸ) from 0◦ to 90◦ under the normal incidence of EM wave for both

Fig. 8. (a) RCS reduction of the proposed metamaterial absorber at resonance frequencies for theta (θ) = 0◦ and phi (θ) = 0◦ . (b) Radiation absorption and scattering
at resonance frequencies.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Fig. 9. CMA of the designed absorber. (a) Characteristic angle, (b) Eigenvalue, and (c) modal significance.

TE and TM polarizations, as illustrated in Fig. 10(a) and 10(b). The di­

η2 cosθi − η1 cosθt
rection of the propagation vector of the EM wave is kept constant Γ⊥ = (17)
η2 cosθi + η1 cosθt
(normal to the structure), while the directions of the electric and mag­
netic fields are varied by an angle ɸ in the x-direction and y-direction, where η1 and η2 are the intrinsic impedances of free space and
respectively. As the proposed ladder-shaped absorber structure has a absorber structure, respectively.θi and θt are the angle of the incidence
four-fold symmetry, it retains the polarization-insensitive behavior for and angle of transmission. Medium 1 represents the free space (from
all values of ɸ. The structure is also investigated for different incident where the incident EM wave impinges on the structure), and medium 2
angles. The reflection coefficients under oblique incidence for parallel is the proposed absorber structure. Eqs. (16) and (17) are valid at an
polarization and perpendicular polarization are given by Eqs. (16) and interface between two continuous media. In the metamaterial concept,
(17), respectively [32]: the 3-layer absorber geometry (top metallic pattern, intermediate
dielectric substrate, and bottom ground plane) is generally treated as an
η1 cosθi − η2 cosθt
Γ‖ = (16) effective homogenous medium characterized by effective permittivity
η1 cosθi + η2 cosθt
(εeff) and effective permeability (μeff) [1,2]. Our proposed absorber
structure is considered a metasurface (i.e. 2-dimensional metamaterial),
and it has been treated as a homogenous continuous media in this

Fig. 10. Simulated absorptivity curve at different polarization angles under (a) TE polarization. (b) TM polarization.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

manuscript. Therefore, the above equations have been applied to accuracy during manual measurement setup, fabrication tolerance, the
determine the reflection coefficient of the proposed absorber structure. dispersive effect of the substrate at high frequency, etc. While doing the
It is clear from the above equations that for a larger value of the angle of manual measurement, it is very difficult to set the antennas at precise
incidence (θ), the reflection coefficient increases. Hence the design of angles as well as place the absorber sample at a perfect position during
the structure is crucial for getting the minimum reflection coefficient each set of measurements. The effect of multipath propagation (where
irrespective of θbeing large or small. Then, the proposed structure is the EM signal travels to the fabricated sample from the transmitting
studied for oblique incidence from θ = 0◦ to 60◦ for both TE and TM antenna and after reflection travels to the receiving antenna, through
polarized EM waves. In the case of TE polarized wave, the direction of multiple paths) also increases under oblique incidence, which is difficult
the incident electric field is kept constant, whereas the direction of to ignore. These multiple errors sometimes get added up to display some
propagation of the wave and incident magnetic field vector are varying noticeable deviations under oblique incidence.
with the incident angle θ.In the same way, for TM polarized wave, the The performance characteristics of the proposed absorber have been
direction of the incident magnetic field is kept constant, whereas the compared with some earlier reported relevant metamaterial absorbers in
direction of propagation of the wave and the incident electric field Table 3. The proposed design shows a combination of all desired char­
vector is varying by the incident angle θ. The responses for both TE and acteristics, such as large fractional bandwidth, polarization insensitivity,
TM polarized EM waves are almost similar by maintaining good ab­ compact topology, small periodicity, and wide angular stability, while
sorption bandwidth (while considering above 80% absorptivity) up to θ other reported works contain either one or two of these characteristics.
= 45◦ as depicted in Fig. 11(a) and (b). In addition, the geometry offers a large absorption bandwidth at the
expense of a single-layer thin substrate (λ0/8), which has not been
5. Measurement setup and experimental results observed in the existing literature.

The proposed absorber structure is fabricated with 10 × 10 unit cells 6. Conclusion

with an overall dimension of 200 mm × 200 mm × 1.61 mm using
printed circuit board (PCB) technology as depicted in Fig. 12(a). The In this paper, a wideband, wide angularly stable, polarization-
schematic of the test setup is illustrated in Fig. 12(b). For the mea­ insensitive metamaterial absorber has been designed and experimen­
surement of absorptivity response, first, a copper plate with an identical tally verified. The proposed structure exhibits an absorption bandwidth
dimension to that of the fabricated structure, acting as an ideal reflector, of 7.0 GHz ranging from 21.2 to 28.2 GHz in the K-band with more than
is placed in front of the antennas and the reflected signal from its top 91% absorptivity. The absorption peaks are observed at frequencies
surface has been measured. Later, the copper plate is replaced by the 21.4 GHz, 24.4 GHz, and 27.8 GHz having 99.9%, 96%, and 99.4%
proposed absorber and its reflection coefficient has been recorded. Then, absorptivities, respectively. The resonances are verified with charac­
the difference between the two reflected powers is calculated, which teristic mode analysis as well as equivalent circuit modeling. The ab­
gives rise to the measure of the actual reflection coefficient from the sorption mechanism is elaborated with the top and bottom surface
fabricated prototype. Two broadband horn antennas (one transmitting current distribution, induced electric field, and parametric analyses of
antenna and another receiving antenna) are connected to a vector different geometrical dimensions. The structure is studied for polariza­
network analyzer Anritsu S820E, where the power spectra have been tion insensitivity under normal incidence which shows similar absorp­
measured. The complete experimental arrangement for normal inci­ tion performances for all polarization angles of the incident EM wave.
dence is shown in Fig. 13(a) and (b). The measured response under the Satisfactory absorption response (with more than 80% absorptivity) has
normal incidence of EM wave is observed over a wide frequency with also been observed for a wide incident angle up-to 45ofor both TE and
more than 90% absorptivity, as shown in Fig. 14 (a). The measured TM modes under oblique incidence. Broadband response, polarization
results for different polarization angles are depicted in Fig. 14(b). In insensitive topology, angular stability characteristic, and ultra-thin ge­
Fig. 14(c), the experimental responses for different oblique incident ometry (λ λ0/8) make the proposed absorber device a commercially
angles under TE polarized wave are presented, which show similar ab­ suitable candidate for RCS reduction and sensing applications at the K-
sorption bandwidths as those of the simulated results. In all three cases, band.
the measured responses are found reasonably matched with their
simulated counterparts, although a small shift is observed on the higher
frequency side. This minor deviation can be accounted for the small

Fig. 11. Simulated absorptivity at different incident angles under (a) TE and (b) TM polarization.

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Fig. 12. (a) Fabricated absorber array and unit cell. (b) Schematic of test setup to measure the absorptivity of the fabricated metamaterial absorber.

Fig. 13. Measurement setup for the proposed metamaterial absorber: (a) horn antennas and array absorber, and (b) VNA setup.

Fig. 14. (a) Comparison of simulated and measured absorptivity results of the structure under normal incidence. Measured absorptivity for (b) differentpolarization
angles under normal incidence, and (c) different oblique incident angles under TE Polarization.

Table 3
Comparison with earlier reported broadband metamaterial absorber.
Ref. Unit cell thickness (mm) Resonant Frequency Band (GHz) Periodicity Fractional Bandwidth Polarization Incidence angle insensitivity (degree)
(%) Insensitive
TE TM

[16] λ0/7 24–26 λ0/9 22 Yes θ < 30 ◦

(above 80%) θ < 30◦ (above 80%)
[33] λ0/3 12–27 λ0/1.4 77 No θ < 45◦ (above 80%) θ < 45◦ (above 80%)
[34] λ0/4 14.2–32.9 λ0/7 79 No θ < 60◦ (above 80%) θ < 60◦ (above 80%)
[35] λ0/3 19.7–20.1 λ0/1.5 4 Yes θ < 30◦ (above 80%) θ < 30◦ (above 80%)
[36] λ0/6 20–30 λ0/0.46 40 No θ < 20◦ (above 80%) θ < 30◦ (above 80%)
Proposed λ0/8 21.2–28.2 λ0/1.4 28 Yes θ < 45◦ (above 80%) θ < 45◦ (above 80%)

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L. Dewangan et al. AEUE - International Journal of Electronics and Communications 170 (2023) 154828

Declaration of Competing Interest conductor/sensor for Ku/K/Ka/5G (mm-Wave) band applications. Measurement
2023;210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2023.
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The authors declare that they have no known competing financial absorber based on impedance surface. AEU-Int J Electron Commun 2021;1(138):
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence 153860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeue.2021.153860.
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